By the privilege of Empress Maria Theresa dated November 12, 1774, the Great Kikin District was established, which included ten villages, among them Kumane. This was a "privileged Serbian district" within the feudal Austrian monarchy. This privilege regulated the relationships between the landholding nobility and their subjects, the internal organization of the district as a feudal institution, as well as the rights and duties of the population towards the authorities.
The inhabitants were exempt from corvée labor (forced labor) and received regal rights. In the event of war, they were obligated to pay a contribution—a war tax. The community was granted a form of self-governance. They elected a leader and sworn officials who collected taxes for the Magistrate and carried out other duties. They were also granted various other privileges.
From 1779, Kumane, along with the entire Banat region, became part of Hungary and remained in this composition until 1848. The Hungarians recognized a good part of the privileges that the Serbs enjoyed. They allowed them to elect their municipal administration, judges, and sworn officials every year at first, and later every third year, in the presence of senators and magistrates.
Delegates from all ten villages attended the district assemblies. Vasa Stajić, in his work "The Great Kikin District," notes that on June 14, 1791, the Kumane municipality was represented by Jovan Radišić, Vasa Kumrić, and Teodor Brusin. Later, at the ceremonial assembly of the District, held on December 19, 1794, the municipality of Kumane was represented by the judge, eškut, and notary: Vasilije Đurić, Arsen Jelić, and Stefan Mišković. Vasa Stajić mentions that on April 30, 1794, an audit of the Kumane municipality’s accounts for the period from 1791 to 1794 was conducted and it was established that former judges Arsen Jelić and Grigorije Tubić had received 256 forints from the municipality's income without the knowledge of the municipal treasurer and had spent it all on daily allowances and other needs.
By privilege, the inhabitants received arable land (sessional or constitutive) with the obligation to pay a tax of 20 krajcars per year per jutor (approximately 0.57 acres). The land was divided into sessions of 34 jutors: 24 jutors of arable land, 6 jutors of meadows or hayfields, 3 jutors of pastures, and one jutor for homesteads. By 1776, the division of sessional land among the municipalities was completed. The division considered merits earned in war, the number of household members, livestock holdings, and loyalty to the state authorities. The oldest record, dated January 12, 1781, shows that in Kumane, 81 complete sessions, 53 halves, 6 quarters, and 12 eighths were distributed, totaling 3,536 jutors and one extra clergy session. Kumane had 64 and 14/16 jutors of vineyards and 19 and 13/16 gardens. In addition to these arable areas, the municipality leased out 5,649 jutors of pasture land to Kumane residents and some from nearby places who paid more. At that time, the village had 180 households and 41 houses. The remaining residents lived in earth shelters.
Since the Great Kikin District had a predominantly agrarian character, issues of land ownership and tax payments were central to the privilege of November 12, 1774. According to point 5 of that privilege, the head tax amounted to 6 forints and 30 krajcars annually per person, or in kind, 10 požuns (approximately 64.5 liters) of grain, or 16 požuns of barley. For arable land, peasants paid land tax of 20 krajcars per year, and they also paid tithes on crops and livestock. The tithes were collected in kind and sold, with the proceeds used to pay a lump sum. Those who collected taxes often abused their positions. On February 5, 1794, the district closed down the judge and treasurer from Kumane because they could not justify why the municipality owed 587 požun units of wheat, 648 units of barley, and 177 units of oats in tithes.
One of the most severe famine years in Kumane was 1794/95. Due to a severe drought, the peasants did not even receive seed from the harvest they had sown. While the village poor starved, the wealthier landowners hid food, which was discovered by a commission during requisitioning. Since requisitioning could not meet the needs of the starving population, the district took out a loan, bought corn in Srem, and distributed it to the population for food and sowing.
In 1799, the Kumane municipality paid the district 98.28 1/2 forints for the so-called "lamb tithe" for 2,109 lambs.
For operating taverns in Kumane during 1782-1783, Todor Ristić paid 116.15 forints, Mića Ristić paid 15 forints, and Pera Cucić paid 345.45 forints; in 1792-1793, Todor Šićarović paid 650 forints. The municipality also leased meat shops. Todor Krstić, Arsen Jelić, and Josim Sekulić paid 6 forints each in rent for the 1792-1793 period. From 1801 onwards, Petar Đorđević also rented a butcher shop. The mill rent was 6 forints per watermill. In 1781, there were 6 watermills in Kumane.
Establishment of New Kumane
The inhabitants of Kumane often suffered from war devastation, epidemics, and natural disasters: droughts and hail, and most frequently from floods. At the request of the residents and with the agreement of the district from 1801, the Kumane residents began to build a new village on land called Crni Pesak (Black Sand), located 4 kilometers from the old settlement, where Kumane is still located today.
The establishment of the new village under the conditions of the time was associated with great material and physical efforts, which is why the construction lasted for years. By 1809, 236 houses and 3 watermills had been built. The residents paid a tax of 1,299 forints and 18 1/2 krajcars that year. The maximum tax for wealthier villagers was 13 forints, while the minimum was one forint.
We also have data on the tithes that the Kumane municipality delivered to the district in kind for the period from 1813 to 1818:
- In 1813: 748 požun units of wheat, 47 units of barley
- In 1816: 9 požun units of wheat
- In 1817: 2,396 požun units of wheat, 395 units of barley
- In 1818: 1,416 požun units of wheat, 249 units of barley
The development of the village from 1821 to 1825 led to an increase in the population. In 1821, 357 homes were built in the village. By 1825, the village continued to expand and grow. Foreign families also settled there. At that time, there were 398 homes with 2,934 residents, including 2,871 Orthodox Christians, 54 Roman Catholics, and 9 Jews. The immigrant families were craftsmen. Their names and origins are unknown. However, it is known that Jožef Pavek, who came from Turski Bečej, paid the rent for a butcher shop with 400 forints of silver.
The new Orthodox church was built of bricks and completed in 1823. It still stands in the center of the village today. The iconostasis was completed in 1854. It was made by the renowned painter Nikola Aleksić, while the woodwork, which also has significant artistic value, was done by the well-known artist Janjić from Arad. The church houses a chasuble on red silk, created by the famous painter Teodor Češlar. After one hundred years, the church was restored along with the iconostasis. The artistic work was carried out by Stevan Aleksić, an academic painter, who also created two new icons.
School in the New Village
With the further development of the new village and the increase in the number of inhabitants, the number of students also grew. Therefore, a new school building needed to be constructed. According to preserved photographs and accounts from the oldest residents, the first school was in a low building that was covered with reeds but had many windows.
From 1822 to 1826, Jefta Sekulić was one of the teachers in the new school built around 1820. The names of other teachers are not known. In 1826, there were 225 children aged 6 to 12 in Kumane, 162 boys and 63 girls. Although compulsory education for both boys and girls had been established since 1776, only 59 boys and 3 girls attended school in Kumane. Parents paid tuition, making it impossible for poor families to educate their children. Parents often kept their children, especially girls, to help with household chores. Classes were conducted in the local language, but the textbooks were written in Church Slavonic, which the children did not understand, presenting a significant difficulty. Teachers received salaries in cash or in kind, and additionally, they were allotted 2 lanças of arable land and 2 lanças of meadows. According to Sentklara, teachers received an annual salary of 90 forints, about 625 liters of grain, and 20 bundles of reeds. Salaries were determined annually by a new contract. Those who agreed to lower salaries found it easier to obtain teaching positions.
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